Why Resend’s pricing is usage-based?

Resend uses a usage-based pricing model, which means your costs scale with how much you use the product, not just a fixed subscription fee. 

This structure is common in infrastructure or delivery-layer products (email, storage, compute) because usage varies significantly from team to team. One developer might be sending 3,000 emails/month for a side project, while another is handling millions of messages for a scaled SaaS product.

In Resend’s case:

• Transactional emails scale based on number of emails sent

• Marketing emails scale based on number of contacts stored

The more volume you send or store, the cheaper your unit cost becomes. For example:

On the Transactional Scale plan, 100,000 emails cost $90 → $0.90 per 1,000 emails

But at 1,000,000 emails/month, it’s $650 → $0.65 per 1,000 emails

This descending cost curve is intentional. It rewards scale without penalizing growth. It also aligns with the way most modern infra is priced—tiered down instead of linear growth.

Why not offer flat pricing?

Because flat pricing would either:

• Overcharge smaller users to subsidize heavier usage

• Or force the company to cap usage limits artificially

By charging based on actual usage, Resend avoids this and keeps entry barriers low with free tiers. 

What do you get with each Resend’s pricing plans

Resend’s plans don’t just differ by volume, they also control what features you get access to. This is where it gets important to read past the top-line numbers.

Two users paying the same amount might end up with very different capabilities depending on whether they’re on the Transactional or Marketing track, and which plan tier they’re on.

Let’s break down the key differentiators:

1. Data retention

• Transactional Free: 1-day retention

• Transactional Pro: 3-day retention

• Transactional Scale: 7-day retention

• Transactional Enterprise: Custom retention

If you rely on email logs for debugging or compliance, this can be a limiting factor. 

A longer retention window means you can query logs, troubleshoot errors, and confirm delivery across a wider window of time.

2. Domain & audience limits

• Transactional Free: 1 domain

• Transactional Scale: Up to 1,000 domains

• Marketing Free: 1 audience

• Marketing Pro/Scale/Enterprise: Unlimited audiences and domains

For companies managing multiple brands or environments (e.g. staging, production), domain flexibility becomes critical. Marketing teams also benefit from having separate audiences for onboarding, product updates, or promotions.

3. Support channels

• Free plans: Ticket-based support

• Pro plans: Ticket support

• Scale plans: Ticket + Slack support

• Enterprise: Priority support

The ability to get live or faster support matters as systems scale. Especially during high-volume incidents or integrations, having Slack or dedicated channels helps teams resolve issues faster.

4. Analytics access (marketing only)

• Free: No analytics

• Pro and above: Full analytics enabled

This is a common example of feature gating, key visibility is locked behind paid tiers. Without analytics, you’re essentially flying blind on engagement metrics.

5. Dedicated IP addresses

• Transactional: Available as an add-on on Pro and Scale

• Marketing: Included only on Enterprise

Dedicated IPs allow you to control your own email reputation instead of sharing with other senders. This can significantly impact deliverability, especially at scale.

How Overage and Upgrade logic actually works

Unlike many infrastructure providers, Resend does not automatically charge you for excess usage. Instead:

• If you exceed your monthly quota, you’ll get notified.

• You’ll be prompted to upgrade to a higher tier.

• If you repeatedly exceed limits without upgrading, Resend may temporarily pause sending until you adjust your plan.

This avoids surprise billing, a common frustration for developers who have seen costs double or triple overnight on other platforms.

Feature Gating and Dedicated IPs, The Add-On Trap?

Resend’s pricing isn’t just about how many emails you send or how many contacts you store. Several features are gated, locked behind higher tiers or Enterprise plans. This matters because for many teams, the real cost of switching plans comes from these features, not just raw volume.

Dedicated IP Addresses

At scale, your sender reputation determines whether emails hit the inbox or the spam folder. Shared IPs are fine for small projects, but once you’re sending hundreds of thousands of emails, you’ll need a dedicated IP. Since Resend doesn’t disclose the cost of this add-on, it’s a hidden variable you should account for early.

Analytics (marketing only)

• Free tier: No analytics at all.

• Paid tiers (Pro and above): Analytics included.

Without analytics, you can’t track opens, clicks, or engagement, which makes the free tier functional only for basic sends, not for measuring campaign effectiveness.

Data retention and domains

• Retention: 1 day on free → 3 days on Pro → 7 days on Scale → custom on Enterprise.

• Domains: Limited on lower tiers, expanded on Scale and Enterprise.

If your workflow relies on debugging or compliance (e.g., querying logs weeks later), these caps can force an upgrade even if your email volume hasn’t grown.

Why it’s a trap for some teams

This is where developer frustration usually kicks in. You might start with volume-based pricing in mind, only to realize later:

• You need analytics → upgrade to Pro.

• You need longer retention → upgrade to Scale.

• You need a dedicated IP → upgrade to Enterprise or pay for the add-on.

The “add-on trap” isn’t unique to Resend; most email platforms do it. But understanding this upfront helps you avoid surprise upgrades just to unlock a critical feature.

When to use which Resend’s plan

With two product tracks and multiple tiers, it’s not always obvious which Resend plan fits your project. Here’s a clear framework to help you decide.

If you’re running lightweight projects

• Best fit: Free plans

• Use case: Side projects, prototypes, or small SaaS tools sending a few transactional messages and experimenting with email marketing.

• Why: You get 3,000 transactional emails and 1,000 marketing contacts at no cost. Enough to validate an idea without upfront spend.

If you’re scaling a startup

• Best fit: Pro or Scale plans

• Use case: Startups that need onboarding campaigns, weekly newsletters, or steady transactional volume in the tens to hundreds of thousands.

• Why: These plans balance affordability with essential features like analytics, longer data retention, and support upgrades.

• Tip: Transactional Pro at $35 for 100k emails is a cost-effective entry point, but Scale is where you unlock Slack support and higher domain flexibility.

If you’re managing multiple brands or campaigns

• Best fit: Scale plans

• Use case: Agencies, multi-product companies, or platforms with multiple environments (staging, production, client domains).

• Why: Higher domain limits and expanded audiences make it possible to run campaigns without constantly bumping into restrictions.

If you’re an enterprise with compliance or deliverability needs

• Best fit: Enterprise plans

• Use case: Companies with strict compliance requirements, global sending, or high-volume deliverability challenges.

• Why: Enterprise unlocks priority support, flexible data retention, and bundled dedicated IPs (for Marketing). These features matter as much as volume at this scale.

Bottom line

Resend’s pricing works best if you value cost predictability and clear scaling paths. It requires a bit more planning if your usage is spiky or you rely on gated features. 

By understanding where the model helps, and where it forces upgrades. you can make a better choice for your project before you ship to production.